The Fallen Kindgom
by Malicious Ink
Summary: What happens when a simple conversation at a restaurant turns into a revelation Shinichi was trying to avoid? Or when the Black Organization shows up at the Suzuki Corporation's New Years Masquerade Party?  Rated T for eventual violence. NOT JUST ROMANCE!
1. Chapter 1

**The Fallen Kingdom**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the animated series Meitantei Conan (名探偵コナン)/Case Closed/Detective Conan. Some of the characters in this story have been made up;

I make no claim to the characters created by Gosho Aoyama (青山 剛昌 _Aoyama Gōshō_.)

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**One **

**Fueling the Fire **

"It's a giant masquerade party Ran, I mean really, c'mon! You've _got_ to come!" Sonoko whined before taking another bite of her yakisoba. "It's one of the biggest events the Suzuki Corporation has ever funded! Over a thousand people will be attending!" She proclaimed, trying to hold back her excitement. "I mean, think of all the famous, hot, _single _actors who will be there!"

"I'm really sorry Sonoko." Ran sighed, looking down at her own plate of yakisoba solemnly. "I just don't think I'll be able to go, I promised to spend New Years Eve and New Years Day in Osaka with Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan." She replied in a soft voice, hoping she didn't upset her best friend. "They asked me quite awhile ago." She added in hopes that it would seem less like she was letting Sonoko down.

However instead of being upset Sonoko simply pulled out her brand new smart phone and began to search her copy of the guest list. "Hattori Heiji and Toyama Kazhua, right?" She asked, even though she was positive that was the correct names since she had already checked six times while waiting for Ran. After receiving a nod from Ran she typed in their names and then grinned once she saw they were marked as undecided. "Looks like you just have to tell them you were invited as well."

"Alright, well, I'll do my best to try and make it, but I can't make any promises." Ran sighed once more, trying to force a smile. She hated letting people down, let alone the ones she truly cared about, however there was no other way to end this conversation without telling the truth. "Kazuha-chan wanted to see the New Years Eve fireworks."

"There will be fireworks…oh and did I mention _Shinichi _was invited?" Sonoko winked, clapping her chopsticks in Ran's face, accidentally sending an onion flying across the room. "Oops…" She said in a low voice, bringing her hand to her mouth, as she watched the onion hit a man square in the face. "Please tell me he can't see me…" She said, moving so that she was directly across from Ran in hopes that she would shield her from view. "That mans kind of scary looking…"

"I'm not looking!" Ran said in a stern voice knowing that if she looked the man may think that she did it. "If it's the man in black…with the long blonde hair…" She said in a low voice, leaning in closer so that only Sonoko could hear her, "I'm pretty sure he was one of the men on the rollercoaster when I went to Tropical Land with Shinichi…you know, the one where that guy was murdered…" She swallowed hard and then leaned back in her seat. She had a bad feeling about that man ever since the first time she had seen him. _Why does he make me feel so on edge? Is it because the last time I saw him was also the last day I saw Shinichi in a normal setting? _

"Yea…" Sonoko said, moving back into a comfortable position once she realized he hadn't looked up, but instead pulled up a newspaper to shield his face. "Anyways!" She began, in a rather loud voice, hoping to make it seem as if her and Ran had just been gossiping like normal teenagers. "Kudo will _definitely _show! Or else, he obviously doesn't love you Ran! I mean, what kind of boyfriend leaves his girlfriend in a room full of over a thousand people…at a masquerade party?" She began to giggle, watching as Ran's face turned a bright shade of pink.

"_He's not my boyfriend!"_ Ran almost shouted, but luckily realized she was in a public place before she got too loud, and opted for glaring at her friend while kicking her in the shin. "And what does that have to do with anything? Do you really think I'd run off with someone I just met…who was wearing _a mask_?" Ran questioned, beginning to get a little too defensive.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down!" Sonoko said, holding her hands up, showing Ran she meant no harm. "I'm just saying. You and I both know he loves you and that he's just too stubborn to admit it. And before you deny it, you feel the same _exact_ way about him! And if he were to leave you alone, in such a large crowd, he'd make a pretty crappy boyfriend…"

"I-I guess so…" Ran stammered, so stunned at what her best friend said that she didn't exactly know how to respond.

"So you finally admit it?" Sonoko said in a teasing voice as she prodded her best friend in the arm with one of her chopsticks, watching her face grow increasingly red. "Hey," She said in a suddenly serious tone, peering over Ran's shoulder, and tilting her head to the side in confusion, "Did you see that creeper leave?"

"N-no…" Ran said, once against startled by Sonoko's words, as she turned to look at the table behind her. "Maybe he's friends with the cook and went out the back door?" She suggested looking around the rest of the restaurant, not seeing him, and then turning around as an unsettling feeling began to form in the pit of her stomach.

**.xXx.**

"Did you here that, Vodka?" Gin questioned as he got into the driver's seat of his black Porsche 356A and ripped a small microphone from his newspaper, crushing it under his fingers, and dropping it into his ashtray.

"Yea, I got all the details written down right here, Aniki," Vodka replied waving a small black notebook in the air, "Who'd of thought that annoying little detective would still be alive?"

"I had my suspicions…" Gin replied, grinning wickedly, as he snatched the notebook, stowed it in the pocket of his black trench coat, and started the car. "But nothing to confirm them until today…nor did I know his point of weakness…"

"So do you think Anokata will be excited or annoyed?" Vodka questioned, receiving a dirty look, and then being thrown forward as Gin slammed his foot on the gas. _Maybe I shouldn't have said that…_

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**Author's Note: **Thank you very much for reading! I know this chapter is very short, however its simply a teaser for the rest of the story. I've been toying with this idea for quite awhile now and I've finally decided it may make a good story (now remember that is strictly my opinion!) Please review the first chapter! I aim to post the next chapter within the next week so please read that as well. I promise the story will get more exciting in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

**The Fallen Kingdom **

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the animated series Meitantei Conan (名探偵コナン)/Case Closed/Detective Conan. Some of the characters in this story have been made up;

I make no claim to the characters created by Gosho Aoyama (青山 剛昌 _Aoyama Gōshō_.)

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**Two**

**Setting the Stage**

"Really, you were just about to call me?" Ran exclaimed excitedly into the receiver of her light pink cell phone. "Thank goodness! I didn't want to be the one to ruin our original plans, but I promised Sonoko I would at least tell you about the party Kazuha-chan." She said as the unsettling feeling she had been carrying around all day began to dissolve. _Perhaps it wasn't that man from earlier…and instead it was just me not wanting to let anyone down?_

Kazuha sighed, thinking that Ran was such a good person, and wondering if she ever took herself into consideration when it came to these kinds of situations. "Oh, you shouldn't have worried yourself so much Ran-chan! I've seen the fireworks in Osaka so many times, I was really only excited because we were going to be showing them to you and Conan-kun. However, this party sounds like it's going to be way more fun!" She said, hoping to make her friend feel as if the change of plans wasn't her fault. "And did I mention how excited Heiji is?"She added, trying to keep her own excitement from showing in her voice.

"No, I don't think you did." Ran replied as she began to fidget with the hem of her dark blue skirt. She hadn't had a chance to change out of her school uniform yet and it was starting to get uncomfortable.

"Sonoko hand wrote his invitation, telling him there was going to be a murder-mystery at some point during the party. He said it's probably going to happen during dinner and then went on about how most people go with the poisoning cliché. Anyways, is your father going?" Kazuha questioned, trying to make it seem as if she could careless about what Heiji had to say, even though they both knew that was far from the truth.

"Um, I don't think so. My mother sent him an invitation for dinner; however he hasn't really said anything about it. I only know because she asked me to put it on his desk and I could see through the envelope." She sighed, her voice sounding somewhat distant as turned her gaze to the large windows behind her father's work desk that read "Mouri Detective Agency" and began to think of her life before her father became a private detective. _They seemed so happy…_She thought, instantly causing tears to well up in her eyes. _Oh come on, you're stronger than that…_

"Then is Conan-kun coming?" Kazuha questioned after several seconds of silence, hoping to direct Ran's thoughts away from her parents, knowing that the fact that they weren't living together upset her.

"Yes. I bet he'll really look forward to it once I tell him. He'll probably spend most of his time with Hattori-kun working on the solution to the mystery though." Ran began to laugh a bit as her mood began to lighten. She couldn't help but picture both Conan and Heiji getting so involved in the fake mystery that they actually treated the perpetrator as a real criminal.

"Those two mystery-buffs better not ruin the fun for everyone else." Kazuha said, sounding a bit agitated, as she imagined the worst case scenario happening, which would be an actual case occurring. "They always manage to cause trouble…" It seemed like every time Conan and Heiji were together bodies practically fell from the sky.

Ran laughed a bit, however it wasn't because what Kazuha had just said was funny, instead it was because she was a bit nervous. She knew that it was true, something bad always managed to happen around the two of them. "I'm sure not-…" She began, only to be interrupted by their landline ringing. "Oh, hold on Kazuha, the landline is ringing." She set her phone down and quickly picked up the other one on the third and final ring. "Hello, Mouri Detective Agen-…"

"It's me Ran." A familiar voice interrupted, causing Ran's heart to beat a bit faster and a small smile to play across her face. "How are you?"

**.xXx.**

"Does this girl do anything other than talk to her friends?" Vodka said as he lowered his seat a bit so that he could lean back more and crossed his arms. "She's starting to get rather annoying, don't you think Aniki?"

"You're starting to get rather annoying." Gin replied as he readjusted his mirrors so that he could see if any patrons were coming to see the detective. _Seems like a pretty ordinary neighborhood. She seems like a pretty ordinary girl…_

"Let's hope her father doesn't return anytime soon and finds the bugs we hid." Vodka said as he watched Gin light up a cigarette. "Hey, Aniki…what if she was talking about a different Kudo Shinichi?" He questioned as he tried to stifle a yawn. "I mean, Kudo is a rather common last name and the same goes for Shinichi."

"You idiot," Gin said in an all too calm voice, rolling his eyes, and looking in the rearview mirror once more, "She was with that detective brat at Tropical Land. We should've kept tabs on-…wait, ssh, she's on the phone with someone else." He quickly placed his hand over Vodka's mouth so that he wouldn't say something idiotic again and ruin what may be a piece of crucial information.

"_I'm doing fine, Shinichi, how about you?" _Ran's voice echoed through the car as Gin turned up the volume on their transmitter-receiver.

"Would you like to take back what you said earlier?" Gin said looking at Vodka as a wicked grin played across his face.

**.xXx.**

"I'm doing fine, Shinichi, how about you?" Ran said, taking a seat and completely forgetting that she was still on the phone with Kazuha. "And when are you coming home?" She said, sounding both annoyed and concerned at the same time. "Surely you're not the only one working on that case…"

"I-I don't know Ran. I'm sorry, it's just this case is extremely involved. Every time we get a lead something else happens." Shinichi sighed, hoping to change the conversation as quickly as possible. "Anyways, what are you doing over the winter break?" As he asked that he began to ponder whether or not he already knew that answer to that. Had she mentioned anything recently or had he not been paying any attention? _Oh yea! We're supposed to go to Osaka to meet up with Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan._

"I'm surprised you don't know." Ran replied as she picked up a pencil and began to tap methodically at the desk. "I mean, with you being a detective and all." She rolled her eyes and continued to beat away at the desk with the pencil. _I know you have someone spying on me Shinichi…you can't fool me…it's probably Conan…_

"What are you talking about?" Shinichi replied growing a bit annoyed. "I don't keep tabs on you, ya' know!"

"Well, you'll find out when you check your mail!" Ran replied growing a bit annoyed as well, as she began to tap her pencil wildly. "Anyways, I have to go make dinner for my dad, so I'll talk to you later." She said standing up quickly, causing the chair to scrape across the floor, and hanging up the phone before he could say anything else to her.

**.xXx.**

"R-ran?" Kazuha called out, anxiety apparent in her tone. That had been the seventh time she had called her name in the past two minutes and she still hadn't received a reply. "Ran, did you forget about me?" She questioned, rolling her eyes, moments before a steady tapping began to echo through the speaker. "Is that you?" She said, now sounding a bit annoyed.

However the tapping suddenly began to grow rapid, the rhythm turned violent, and was followed by a sudden scrapping sound. "RAN!" Kazuha shouted as loudly as possible as she began to panic. Everything was now dead silent.

"I-I'm going to call someone to check up on you…" She said as she set her phone down, ran into the other room to get the landline, and quickly dialed 110.

"Osaka Metropolitan Police, what is your emergency?" A woman replied almost instantly after the number was dialed. She sounded as if she was extremely tired and she had been taking call after call all day.

"H-hello, can you please connect me to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police?" Kazuha replied in a shaky voice as she began to nervously tap her foot on the ground. "A-a friend of mine may be in trouble."

"Please hold for one moment." The woman replied in a clipped voice before the line turned to an automated voice saying. "You will be connected in three, two, one."

"Tokyo Metropolitan Police Station, what is your emergency?" A familiar female voice answered, sounding a lot more energetic than the first woman she spoke to.

"May I please speak with either Officer Satou Miwako or Takagi Wataru?" Kazuha replied as she began to grow even more panicked with each passing second. _Ran could already be dead by now…please hurry, please hurry, please hurry! _

"This is Officer Satou Miwako speaking. May I ask who is calling?" Satou replied, her voice becoming a bit hardened due to the fact that she had no idea as to whom she was speaking with.

"This is Toyama Kazuha, I-I'm a friend of Mouri Ran. I was on the p-phone with her e-earlier and s-she just d-disappeared…. And there were s-some weird sounds…" Kazuha replied as tears began to spill, causing it to become even harder to talk.

"I see, I'll send Takagi-kun to check out the situation and I'll have him call you as soon as we know what's going on." Satou replied as her own heart began to pound nervously against her chest. _Please be alright Ran-chan…_

**.xXx.**

"I wonder when they'll be getting home." Ran said to herself as she dumped a package of noodles into a pot of boiling water and wiped off the condensation on the kitchen window. "It's getting awfully late." She said as she gazed out the window, seeing that the sun had almost completely set. _H-hey, that car been there for an awfully long time…_She thought as her eyes landed on a black car sitting across the street. Quickly she locked the window and pulling a pair of cream colored curtains over it just so she felt safer. _Calm down…it's probably a client waiting for Dad…or just a tourist waiting for Poirot to open…_

"Either way!" Ran exclaimed as she took a deep breathe and returned to cooking. "Knowing karate is pretty helpful, right?" She questioned, even though she knew there was no one around to reply. However, she also knew that _they_ didn't know that there was no one else around and subconsciously hoped that by talking to herself she would be able to fool them if she needed to. However it only took less than a minute for the fear to settle in even further in her system.

"Y-you know what?" Ran said as she looked out the window once more, seeing that the car was still sitting there. She attempted to see who was inside it, however it was getting dark now, so she could barely even make out the features of the black car, let alone who was inside. "M-maybe I'll just call Conan…"

**.xXx.**

"Hello? Ran-nee-chan, is something wrong? You sound scared." Conan said into the receiver of his cell phone as he climbed into the passenger's seat of the Professor's bright yellow Beetle. "I'll be home in a few minutes, so don't worry…"

"Is something wrong, Shinichi?" The professor questioned in a low voice as he quickly sped around the corner, sensing that whatever that phone call was about was something that meant Conan had to be home as soon as possible.

Conan shrugged his shoulders to indicate that he didn't know the answer and continued to ask Ran what was wrong. She had yet to answer him; instead she was asking him about his day with a nervous edge to her voice. "Ran-nee-chan, seriously, are you alright?" He asked ignoring her question. His was far more important right now.

"I'm fine Conan-kun, really. I just wanted to know when you'd be coming home." Ran said, feeling bad for lying to him, yet not wanting him to know how terrified she was at the moment. "I'm making chow mein for you and my dad to eat, that is, if you haven't had dinner yet." Ran said as she looked at the clock. It was already eight thirty.

"No, I haven't." Conan lied; he and the other Detective Boys had gone out for Genta's favorite meal, eel-rice. "I have to go though, my phone is dying. I'll be there in less than a minute." He said as he pulled the phone away, hit end, and looked at the professor. "Do you see that?" He questioned pointing towards the other end of the street, which was lit up by flashing red and blue lights. "Let me out here, I want to check what's going on."

"Alright, Shinichi, just be careful." The professor replied as he stopped the car and watched him basically rip off his seatbelt and run towards the Mouri Detective Agency. _Please be alright Ran…please be alright…_Conan thought as his mind began to speculate the worst possible explanations towards her strange tone of voice on the phone.

**.xXx.**

"Hey, Aniki, do you see those?" Vodka said, sitting upright in his seat and putting his seatbelt on; he did not want to be thrown into the dashboard again after pointing out something that might piss Gin off. "Ya think someone called about us?" He asked; he was looking at flashing red and blue lights in the rearview mirror. Obviously someone on this street had called the police for some reason and they were the only thing that looked suspicious enough.

"Yes," Gin said as he put out his fifth cigarette of the hour and started the car, "Lets go, the bugs will disintegrate within the next hour anyways and from the sound of their conversation earlier, Kudo isn't going to be around any time soon. Hopefully he'll join our little game. Maybe I'll be nice and let him say goodbye to her…" He said, sounding stern yet somewhat amused as he stepped on the gas, whizzing past a kid on a skateboard.

"Hey, isn't that the kid from the agency?" Vodka questioned, looking at him through the side mirror and watching as he stopped to stare at them, looking as if someone had just told him he was going to die. "He sort of looks like Kudo as a kid…from those pictures we found…you don't think he may be hi-…"

"Vodka," Gin growled in a clipped voice, interrupting Vodka before he could share whatever ridiculous thought had hit to him this time, "Say another word and I will kill you."

_God…this must really be getting to you…_Vodka thought as he watched the kid disappear from view before settling into a comfortable position. _Either way, he's going to die as well. _

**.xXx.**

_No, no…please no…_Conan thought as he turned around, his eyes landing on the three police cars that were now parked out in front of the agency. _Ran! Are you okay? _He thought as he began to sprint through the crowd that was now gathering outside and up the stairs behind the police officers.

"Hey, you can't go in there!" A male officer said, placing a hand on Conan's shoulder, and stopping him between the door to Kogorou's office and the rest of the house. "There may be a criminal in there and we don't want any casualties, boy."

"B-but, Ran's in there!" Conan practically shouted, as he pulled the officer's hand off of his shoulder, pretended to go towards the officer's right side for a moment, and then sprinted off towards his left. "RAN!" He shouted as he pulled open the door to the main part of the house, only to find the family room empty. "RAN!" He shouted once more becoming even more panicked as he ran off towards the kitchen. _Oh god no, please no…_He thought as his heart sank a bit when he found it was also empty.

"Conan-kun, are you alright?" Ran questioned as she entered the kitchen, finding him standing in the middle of the room with a terrified look on his face.

"R-ran-nee-chan?" Conan turned his head and looked up at her in surprise. She was perfectly fine. So why were the cops searching the office? "What happened?" He questioned looking her straight in the eyes just moments before Officer Takagi entered the room.

"Thank goodness!" Takagi exclaimed as he leaned against the doorframe and let out a sigh. "Everyone at the office…was so worried…your father is…on his way home, Ran-chan." Takagi said, taking a deep breath afterwards.

"W-what are you talking about Takagi-san?" Ran questioned, looking between Conan and Takagi for an explanation. She was extremely confused as to what was going on. One second she was in her bedroom changing out of her uniform and the next she was standing between her kitchen and family room with a police officer leaning against the doorframe. "Did something happen?" She asked as her heart began to beat rapidly. It was her turn to panic now.

"No," Takagi replied as he wiped sweat off of his forehead, "It's just, your friend Kazuha-chan called us and told us that you suddenly stopped talking for a long time and then she heard some weird noises. She was extremely worried about you."

"Oh…oh no! I completely forgot about her! I was on the phone with Shinichi…I-I have to call her back!" Ran cried as she ran past Takagi and towards her father's office. "Oh god, she must be so upset…how could I forget?"

_Thank goodness…_Conan thought as he slummed down against the kitchen doorframe and began to ponder why Gin and Vodka would be driving down this street. _I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something happened to her…_

**.xXx.**

_I've checked every nook and cranny and can't find a single bug, so perhaps they were just driving by and I'm just overreacting? I mean, it's my fault that Ran forgot about Kazuha-chan being on the other line…but still, that doesn't change the fact that I should keep an eye on her tonight. _Conan thought as he made his way back upstairs, locking the door behind him and double checking to make sure it was locked. _Looks like I have a long night ahead of me. _He sighed as he pushed Ran's door open a bit and peered inside.

_Good, she's asleep, this will be even easier then…_Conan said as he took in her sleeping form. She was lying on her side and had a light pink blanket wrapped tightly around her body; the only part of her that was uncovered was her face. "Goodnight Ran." Conan whispered as he propped himself against the wall and crossed his arms.

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**Author's note:** So, I read some of the reviews I got on the first chapter and decided I was in a writing mood. If you're wondering where Gin and Vodka had planted the bugs, the answer is in plants, and they were made out of a substance that decays rapidly when exposed to air. (Who said only Professor Agasa could invent things?) Anyways, the next chapter should be up in a week, unless I decide I'm feeling creative again tomorrow night.

Please review this chapter! Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

**The Fallen Kingdom**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the animated series Meitantei Conan (名探偵コナン)/Case Closed/Detective Conan. Some of the characters in this story have been made up;

I make no claim to the characters created by Gosho Aoyama (青山 剛昌 ,_Aoyama Gōshō_.)

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**Three**

**Black House Will Rock**

"Any updates, Chianti?" Gin inquired in a distant voice as he lifted his glass of scotch and rotated his wrist inward in a circular motion. He watched the ice dance around the outer edge of the glass, generating a whirlpool in the center, as he listened to her drone on in her annoying, narcissistic voice. "Get to the point." Gin demanded coldly as he slammed his glass down on the cherry wood tabletop, causing the ice to crash together and destroy the whirlpool he had created.

"I was just getting there!" The petite, redhead sniper replied as she pulled out a chair at the large, round table Gin and Vodka were sitting at. "But first," She said as she glanced around the room, taking in the two men in black across from her, and a busboy cleaning the rest of the tabletops, "Can we really trust these people not to rat us out?"

"Of course," Vodka replied as he watched her straighten up her leather dress, "This place is owned by the Organization. The boss recommended it. Now tell us what you have to say."

"Alright, but I'm warning you it's rather boring." Chianti sighed as she leaned back in her chair and turned her body at an angle so her stiletto-heeled boots were facing away from the table, as if she planned to trip the busboy when he passed by. "Both of those little brats mentioned Kudo at least seven times today and if you can't tell the boy is obviously infatuated with that girl, you'd think he had a thing for Kudo. You should've seen the way he talked about him!" Chianti laughed, causing the butterfly tattoo on her eyelid to temporarily disappear under a fold of skin.

"Well, looks like we'll be having some fun New Years Eve," Vodka said as he pulled out the same small black notebook from the other day and wrote down the initials H.H. and T.K. beside Chianti's preprinted name, "You'll be in charge of them during the party, so until then I want you to keep an eye on them, unless Gin or I tell you otherwise."

"Disguise yourself differently each time," Gin added as he reached inside his black trench coat and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, offering one to his partner, and then pulling out one for himself, "That boy's more intuitive than he looks." He shoved the cigarette cartridge back into his coat and then grabbed a silver zippo lighter from the space in front of Vodka, flipped it open, and lit his cigarette. "If you even sense that he's spotted you, even if it's just a strange feeling with no evidence, change your appearance as soon as possible; we can not afford to be spotted by anyone." His voice was stern; the intense look in his eyes gave off a silent threat.

"Alright, I'll make sure to blend in with the crowd." Chianti said as she tried to shake off the spine-tingling feeling she had just received without letting either of them notice; being part of this mission meant she couldn't show any fear or hesitation from this point forward or she would instantly be disposed of. "Anyways," she decided to change the subject from herself to the woman she hated with an intense passion, hoping that _she _would be the one only one to be disposed of during this mission, "Where is _that woman?_" A scowl formed on her face as practically hissed the final words of her question making her hatred for her so apparent it caused Vodka to laugh.

"Vermouth is still working." Gin replied in monotone as he took his final puff on his cigarette and then smashed the lit end into a glass ashtray, twisted it around a few times, and then flicked it away from his black gloved hand. "Vodka, have you gotten any information?" Gin questioned as he leaned back in his chair and looked towards the door, which had just swung open; he watched as a petite woman with black hair, which was tied back in a ponytail with the exception of two small curls in the front, strode in.

"Lets just put it this way," Vodka began as he cringed a bit and reached towards the transmitter-receiver in his pocket, instantly turning the small dial on the side towards him so that the volume would go down, "If I hear another thing about _Youko-chan~!_ I'm going to make her a target."

"You shouldn't take your frustration out on her," the women with black hair said as she took a seat beside Chianti and pulled off her navy blue sweater, "And unless you want to switch positions with me you should fill me in on whether or not he's going to meet his wife at her house or at the restaurant as soon as you find out."

"He's on the phone with her now." Vodka said as he turned the volume up on the transmitter-receiver, silently hoping that he wouldn't suddenly begin to yell again since he was sitting under one of their transmitters. "Whatever he's watching is god awful and she seems to think so as well-oh, here's what we need…" Vodka said as he handed began to write in the black notebook once more, this time beside Kir's preprinted name:

**M.K & K.E **

**NYD - Limousine (SNOW BIRD)**

**19:30 M.K., 19:45 K.E. **

He slid the notebook over towards Chianti and continued to listen to what the detective had to say. He kept the sudden burst of happiness he had when the transmission began to die private; he knew it would dissolve completely within the next five minutes, meaning his headache would begin to go away.

"Kir, have you gotten any information?" Chianti questioned as she began to tip her chair back and tap her fingers gently on the table so that they didn't actually make a sound.

"Honestly, I spent the day trying figure out whether or not she is human or a robot created simply to memorize legal terms." Kir replied as she stood up, straightening her black turtle-neck, and flattening her hands over her dark blue jeans. "I'm going to get a drink." She said as she began to walk towards the bar, trying to remember what Vodka had written above her name. _Chianti's targets have the initials H.H. and T.K…who could they be? All I know is that they're from Osaka…damn all this secrecy! _

**.xXx.**

_I hope she doesn't see me…_Conan thought as he watched Ran pay one of the vendors across the street. He had been staying home with the stomach flu for the past few days and even though he felt as if he was going to die he still made it a point of secretly follow Ran to and from school, to the market and from the market, and wherever else she might go.

_Oohh, crap, she's coming this way! _He thought as he quickly pulled himself into the dark alleyway, pulled his sunglasses back up, and his scarf back over his face. _Please don't let her see, please don't let her see…_His heart was racing and his body was shaking in anticipation as he watched her slowly walk by, hoping that he wouldn't be seen. Once she had passed his heart began to slow and he counted to ten, moved forward to see if she was far enough away or if she had stopped at another vendor's shop, and then began to step out of the alleyway.

Suddenly a hand landed on his shoulder, jerking him backwards, and causing his glasses to fall off. His stomach dropped and his body tensed; he felt a hand cover his mouth. "Sssh…" a soft, feminine voice whispered as he began to struggle against the firm hold she had on him. "I'm not going to hurt you." She cooed and suddenly he recognized her voice.

_V-Vermouth…_He thought, his eyes widening, and his heart began to race wildly. Instantly his thoughts went back to Ran and he wished with his entire being that she was alright. _Please be alright, please be alright…_His thoughts echoed through his head as he continued to break free from Vermouth's hold.

"She'll be fine as long as you just trust me." Vermouth whispered as she pulled him even further into the alleyway and up against the back of a building. "I'm not here to hurt you Shinichi…" She whispered into his ear as she let him go. "I'm here to warn you about what's going to happen."

Utterly shocked and confused, Conan found himself sitting on the ground, looking up at the woman who spoke with Vermouth's voice, but looked like the vendor Ran had just purchased meat from. "H-how…?" He questioned in a voice so low that it was almost inaudible.

"That's not important." Vermouth whispered, as she shoved an envelope his jacket, and looked over her shoulder nervously before handing him a fish. "Run," she said in a commanding voice, giving him a ten second head start, and then began to follow after him shouting, "NEXT TIME I CATCH YOU STEALING I'M CALLING THE COPS!"

**.xXx.**

Conan sprinted as if his life depended on it, dropped the fish in the middle of the street, and made his way down narrow alleyways back to the Detective Agency. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Ran talking to the owner of Poirot. Hurriedly he dashed up the stairs and into the house; he threw himself under his covers and reached into his jacket, nearly ripping the envelope out of his pocket in his haste, and then tore it open.

_Silver bullet,_

_Beware Eve, for she plans to bring Adam into the abyss with her misdeeds. Her intentions are masked and she will be lurking through the forest. When the clock strikes twelve, your fate will be sealed, and the devil will claim your soul. _

He read the letter over again, stared at it in utter confusion, and then sat up under the blankets. Something cold slid down his shirt and a chill ran down his spine. He reached into his shirt and pulled out what looked to be a small metal vial. Slowly he opened it, found another piece of paper inside, and pulled it out. Quickly he unrolled the paper, felt something drop into his lap, and then read what it said: _For the party. _He looked down into his lap and saw a small red and white pill. Instantly he shoved the pill and the paper into the vial, shoved that and the letter into his pocket, and then ran out of the house, past Ran, and straight to the Professor's house. Everything suddenly made sense to him, even the oddly phrased letter.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Wow, so I've had this chapter as an unfinished document on my computer since...well since the day I had finished writing chapter two actually. ^^;; Heh-heh, I'm sorry. I had a major writing block during the summer and then next thing you know school started and I was being loaded with homework. Chapter 4 won't be coming until most likely mid-December, due to the fact that I am going to be participating in NaNo WriMo this year and I most likely will not have any time to write anything other than that. However, I would like to get to the New Years Eve party by, well, New Years Eve, so please be looking forward to that. (Chapter 5.)


	4. Chapter 4

**The Fallen Kingdom**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the animated series Meitantei Conan (名探偵コナン)/Case Closed/Detective Conan. Some of the characters in this story have been made up;

I make no claim to the characters created by Gosho Aoyama (青山 剛昌, _Aoyama Gōshō_.)

* * *

**Four**

**Drug of Choice**

"Is Haibara home?" Conan panted into his cell phone as he squeezed his hand to the stitch in his side, cursing at himself mentally for running so fast. His body just couldn't handle the stress; he was actually sick after all. He was also losing time by waiting out the pain as he leaned against the side of a building, lurking in the shadows, and questioning the Professor in order to figure out how to approach the topic that made him so anxious.

To his relief Haibara was not home; Haibara would have a fit if she knew what was going on. He had managed to decipher the note, partially. He knew that _Eve _referred to New Years Eve and was able to assess that the part saying "_her intentions are masked and she will be lurking through the forest" _meant that the Black Organization would be at the Masquerade.

"Do you know when she'll be back?" He questioned, pulling himself away from the wall, and wiping beads of sweat from his face. He took a deep breath as he listened to the Professor's response. "I see," he slowly pulled his arm over his head and leaned into a stretch, "I didn't think she'd agree to go with them…"

The Detective Boys had been invited to join the Yoshida family on vacation in Kitakyushu, which would span from the day after Christmas to the third of January; Haibara had gone with them a few days early on request from the Professor. The rest would ride a train down with Ayumi's father, who would be back in Tokyo for business that day.

"Isn't that where her parents got married?" Conan questioned as he began to walk towards the Professor's. His house was only two streets away now. He would have to be careful, because they most likely had the place under surveillance in some way. "I see, I see." Conan wasn't really listening; instead he was running through all the ways he could quickly get the Professor filled in and find out what his take is on all of this. He was so distracted that he didn't even notice the navy blue car idling on the corner of the Professor's street or the woman inside of it winking at him, mouthing the words, "Good luck" before she pulled away.

"I'm coming around back." Conan said as he made his way up the drive, slowly scanning the perimeter, and then went around back. He quickly scanned the backyard, entered the Professor's house, and locked the door. "Professor, can we go to the train station?" He called, rather loudly, as he began to rummage through the Professor's computer desk in search of paper. Once he found a pad of paper he tore off a sheet and held it to his palm, drew something on it, and then folded it up. "I left something on the train the other day and they called me to come pick it up." He then reached back into the drawer and grabbed the Professor's spare set of keys.

He was lying and he hoped the Professor would sense that. If not the clue he drew on the piece of paper would be enough. Once the Professor came into the room he came up next to him and handed him the keys, with the note underneath. "It's sort of important, so let's just use your spare set and leave quickly…" He was tense. He couldn't think properly. He was hoping that the Professor would keep the piece of paper on his person and dispose of it when they got to where they were truly going, even though if anyone saw it they would most likely be confused.

"A-alright," The Professor stammered, a bit overwhelmed by the how suddenly this had all happened; however once he caught the solemn look on Conan's face he realized it was best not to question, "Lets go then." He began to fumble with his keys, opening the folded paper so that he could see the drawing of people standing on the side of a street under a squared arch. _A bus stop? _He thought, raising an eyebrow at Conan. Conan simply nodded. "They want you to park in the parking garage near the station, because they don't want us parking on the street and getting in the way of traffic."

_And I don't want them following us…_Conan thought as he and the Professor shut off lights and headed for garage.

**.xXx.**

"Alright, now, can you tell me what's going on?" The Professor said in a hushed voice as he and Conan climbed into a seat in the back of a bus. They had just parked their car in the parking garage and walked around the entire building, through the crowd at the train station, and got on the bus at the last possible second in the middle of a large group. Barely anyone was sitting in the back; out of those who were, none of them were suspicious, due to the fact that they were all elementary school students and middle school students.

Conan reached into his pocket and pulled out the letter, handing it over to the Professor, and then put his hand back into his pocket to make sure the vial was still safe. "Remember what I told you I was doing on New Years Eve when you asked me the other day?" He questioned as the Professor read over the note; he nodded and Conan continued. "This came with that…." He pulled out the vial, opened it, and tenderly handed it over to the Professor.

He took a deep breath and pretended to stretch; scanning the passengers to make sure absolutely no one was looking, and then whispered in a hush voice. "Vermouth…" The Professor, whose eyes were now wide, and hands trembling was staring at him in disbelief. Conan took the vial and its contents back, stowing it away. He then folded up the note and put it away as well. "They know," he didn't have to assume that anymore, "and I'm going to need to use that…"

"You can't Shinichi! It's dangerous!" The Professor scolded, in as hushed a voice as possible, as he looked at him incredulously. The Organization was their enemy. Why would Vermouth give him such a thing? "It's a trap!" He warned, but Conan didn't seem to care.

"It may be, but it's the best we've got. I can't just sit back and do nothing." He bit down on his lower lip and clenched his fist. From what he gathered in that note, they were planning something big. So many lives were at stake; he needed to stop them. He needed to save the people he cared about, as well as the innocent lives that would be on that ship a little over a week from now.

The Professor sighed. "Of course, I should've known you'd say something like that. It's no wonder you're the way you are now." He leaned back in his seat and wiped at the beads of sweat that had formed on the back of his neck. "But, we're going to get some help if we're going to do this…I'm going to call your parents."

**.xXx.**

"Ran-kun, I'm so sorry I forgot to call you last night. I spoke with your father, but I assume he was drunk…" "The Professor" said as he sat down on the edge of his hotel bed and tugged at his collar; he hated lying to her, but it was for the best. "Conan-kun's parents called me yesterday morning saying they wanted to see their son for the holidays; they said they tried to call you, but for some reason couldn't get a hold of you."

"Oh, we changed our phone service because dad got a discount by doing a commercial for Tokyo Mutual and even though it's terrible service, he couldn't resist." Ran replied, rolling her eyes, and sighing into the phone. "But, I really wish Conan would've called my cell phone before leaving the house. He could've left a message or at least told dad…"

"Your father was out," "The Professor" replied, which wasn't a lie; the detective had been working on adultery cases all day, "And Conan was so excited to see his parents that he must've forgotten. I'll have him call you when they get in, okay?" He sighed; they would be spending the next eight days in different hotels. The Professor's wallet was going to be empty, what with the different hotel services, and the fact that he had to call to have the beetle towed back to the house.

"Alright, thank you for letting me know." Ran said softly, trying to hide the fear that was threatening to reveal itself in tone. She was going to be home alone for the night and lately she had been on edge. She felt as if someone was watching her. "Oh and, let him know, if he doesn't plan on coming with me to the Suzuki's party, he can't come home until five o'clock on New Years Day or else no one will be home."

"Alright, I'll let him know." He hung up the phone, setting down his voice modulating bowtie and then leaned back in the bed. _I'm such an asshole…_He thought, wishing he could just be honest with her for once.

"Cheer up Shincihi, it's for the best." The Professor, who had just reentered the room remarked as he sat down on the other bed in the room. "I talked to your parents. They'll be here around eleven o'clock as long as their flights aren't delayed. For now, would you like some room service? I'm starving and if we're going to be planning all of these things out…I need some brain food." As if on cue his stomach growled and he laughed, making it seem for a split second as if this was all just something that happened every day.

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**Author's Note: **I apologize to everyone for making you wait so long for this chapter! (But you're Conan fans, you know how to wait…we've all been waiting friggin' long enough with the series!) I'm not even going to give excuses; instead I'm going to tell you that there are two or three more chapters left. Exciting? For you, yes, for me, terrifying because I have to make sure I portray my ideas correctly. Either way, I have my outline done and now just have to write it…as well as decide if I'm combining the "epilogue" in the last chapter or making it a separate chapter. It all depends on if I think it makes it look messy or not.


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